Score: UC Davis 93, UC Santa Barbara 86
Location: The Thunderdome, Santa Barbara, Calif.
Records: UC Davis 9-6, 2-2 Big West | UC Santa Barbara 9-7, 2-3 Big West

THE SHORT STORY: Aggie Basketball was on full display Thursday night at The Thunderdome, as UC Davis erased an 18-point deficit to improve to 9-6 on the season and 2-2 in Big West play. The Aggies were paced by six double figure scorers, including a team-high 19 points from Nils Cooper.

THIS IS AGGIE BASKETBALL 😤#GoAgs pic.twitter.com/x6n7m9WPZh

— UC Davis Men's Basketball (@ucdavismbb) January 9, 2026

• Cooper led the Aggies with 19 points, adding seven rebounds, four assists, and three steals in an all-around performance. 
• Carl Daughtery Jr. provided a massive spark off the bench, pouring in 16 points and connecting on 4-of-6 from three-point range. Daughtery Jr. finished with a team-high +13, plus-minus 
• Marcus Wilson chipped in with 14 points and facilitated the offense with five assists. 
• Connor Sevilla added 13 points, hitting three triples and going a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.
• Niko Rocak and Brayden Fagbemi rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 and 10 points, respectively. 
• Fagbemi matched Cooper for the team lead in rebounds with seven and tied Wilson for the team lead in assists with five. 
• The Aggies' depth was on full display, with the bench accounting for 26 total points.
• UC Davis outscored the UC Santa Barbara 50-39 in the second half.
• UC Davis was efficient from the charity stripe, shooting 83.3 percent (20-of-24) from the line to seal the game. 
• The Aggies moved the ball well, recording 16 assists on 30 made field goals. This was UC Davis' sixth straight game with 15 or more assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• UC Santa Barbara started fast, hitting shots from everywhere to build an early 22-4 lead. 
• UC Davis would weather this early storm by responding with an 8-0 run midway through the half, capped by a Connor Sevilla three-pointer, to trim the deficit to 25-15. 
• The Aggies continued to chip away at the Gaucho lead, narrowing the gap to 47-43 heading into the locker room. 
• UC Davis stormed out of the gates in the second half, orchestrating a 9-0 run finished off by a Marcus Wilson layup to seize their first significant lead at 52-47 with 17:33 remaining.
• UC Davis would lead for much of the second half, but UC Santa Barbara briefly tied the game at 70–70 with 8:51 remaining.
• Despite the brief tie, the second half continued to swing UC Davis' way with a Daughtery Jr. three-pointer with just over two minutes remaining pushing the UC Davis lead to 85-79.
• The Aggies maintained control through the final minute, and an emphatic dunk by Cooper with 34 seconds remaining served as the exclamation point on the 93-86 victory.

UP NEXT
UC Davis stays on the road to continue Big West play on Saturday, Jan. 10, facing Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. Game time is slated for 2 p.m. inside Mott Athletics Center.

ABOUT UC DAVIS ATHLETICS:
UC Davis, the No. 2 ranked public university by the Wall Street Journal, is home to 40,000 undergraduate students and 12,000 employees. Ranked #1 in Agriculture and Forestry as well as #1 in Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis is located in a true California college town nestled between world-class destinations such as the San Francisco Bay Area, Napa Valley and Lake Tahoe. Over 650 Aggie student-athletes compete in 25 Division I varsity sports, with 16 sports transitioning to the Mountain West Conference beginning in 2026–27.